Near Space

The area of space surrounding Sol warrants a proper sci-fi role-playing game adaptation. Indeed, many games adopted the region, either as a two-dimensional abstraction or as some representation of the real three-dimensional space. However, currently, there is little in the way of an up-to-date, concrete star-maps of Sol's immediate neighborhood for the various older-school sci-fi RPGs, such as the Cepheus Engine, 2d6 sci-fi games, and several other games utilizing a two-dimensional hexagon star-map. This product comes to remedy this issue.

This product provides a full Sol-centered, hexagon-based star-map, 20 parsecs by 16 parsecs in size - a "Quadrant" if you will. Additionally, it provides full Cepheus Engine (and 2d6 sci-fi SRD) data for the "main world" planets of each and every star involved, ready for you, the Referee, to colonize.

For your convenience, we also provide expanded Temperature rules for the included worlds, fully compatible with the Cepheus Engine rules, as well as a short overview of star spectral types.

We based these maps on real, up-to-date astronomical data, which we have abstracted into a two-dimensional hexagon grid where each hexagon is one parsec in width. We tried to make sure that the system data suits the data we have now – as of the summer of 2016 – about our stellar neighborhood, though abstracted, as noted above, for gaming use.

All maps, UWPs, and rule data in this product are fully open-content, as per the OGL. This means that you may take this data, and even the maps, and directly base your own sci-fi RPG product on them, even include the map or a modified version of it in your product. And yes, this includes commercial products as well!

This product includes two types of high-res maps as separate downloads. The first is a map including several hypothetical dim stars for the ease of gaming. The second is a map with only real, currently-known stars as of Summer 2016. Each of these maps comes in two versions - full-color and printer-friendly.

This is an excelent product. I have been looking for a map like this and just about decided I had to make my own. Thank you!

Omer JDecember 17, 2016 1:56 pm UTC

PUBLISHER

You're welcome.

K. ADecember 13, 2016 10:35 am UTC

PURCHASER

Hi. I loved your Near Space. One issue, though: I cannot find a listing for Centauri A (G2V) and Centauri B (K1V). They should be in the same hex as Proxima Centauri, I think.

Omer JDecember 13, 2016 10:39 am UTC

PUBLISHER

Thank you for your kind words!

As for Alpha Centauri AW and B, they are indeed in the same hex, with less habitable main-worlds orbiting them. In the next revision of Near Space, we will have three world icons in this hex.

James JNovember 20, 2016 5:58 am UTC

PURCHASER

Very nicely done. Prior to this, I had used the SPI Universe / GDW Near Space for 2300 Maps.
I saw a few efforts at this about a decade ago, where people tried to map the actual distances using topology, and as it got farther away, it was pretty warped from reality.

Very cool different colors and formats and the pdf accompanying it is short and sweet.

This is a nice deal for those Traveller / Stars Without Number players to use for a near Terra Campaign.

The Hypothetical HSC stars are nice, since yes, it would take Jump 2 to get around.

Omer JNovember 20, 2016 6:08 am UTC

PUBLISHER

Thank you for your kind words! :-)

November 16, 2016 1:30 pm UTC

PURCHASER

So far, the only problem I'm seeing is that Epsilon Eridani and Keid occupy the same hex. I guess I could always dump one in favour of the other?

Omer JMay 20, 2017 12:29 pm UTC

PUBLISHER

This is the problem of "flattening" space - you will have to delete some stars and shift others.

October 12, 2016 11:06 pm UTC

PURCHASER

It is a great product. So now... Any thought of expanding out farther into the surrounding "subsectors," for subsequent add-ons?

Omer JOctober 13, 2016 7:43 am UTC

PUBLISHER

Thanks!

We might possibly expand this to other susbectors, though keep in mind that the further you go from Sol, the less real-world stars you will have.

Michael BSeptember 13, 2016 5:29 am UTC

PURCHASER

Interesting to stumble upon something I never even realised I needed...A Traveller-style 2d hex map of the stars surrounding (real) Sol. This will be useful in most home-brew settings using 2d6 Science Fiction rules.

I'm happy to use this for campaigns set at any point in the future. It seems to me that even over thousands of years, most stars won't be moving appreciably if each "hex" is a parsec, ie 3.26 light years across.

Many thanks, and I'll be watching your future releases with interest.
MB

Omer JSeptember 13, 2016 6:58 am UTC

PUBLISHER

You're welcome :-)

We are now working on another product for Cepheus/2d6 sci-fi product called Space Patrol. Fighting interstellar crime as in the Old Days... Coming Halloween 2016, fingers crossed. After that there are other VERY cool and exciting stuff being prepared for a Christmas release.

Russ MSeptember 12, 2016 11:54 am UTC

PURCHASER

The map is great. I need to convert all the system codes to WOIN catalog codes - definitely plan on releasing a version for NEW using the OGL content.

Omer JSeptember 12, 2016 3:40 pm UTC

PUBLISHER

Thanks! Looking forward to see your version :-)

Russ MSeptember 16, 2016 4:15 pm UTC

PURCHASER

I've uploaded the WOIN version. Actually, it's rather system free, as I decided against including planetary catalog codes on account of all that being mainly unknown.

It doesn't credit you anywhere except for in the OGL itself at the back, as the OGL forbids me from referring to your product without written permission, but I'm happy to do so if you give the go-ahead.

I edited the hex map to remove planetary information, and to show the stars as their actual colours. The document refers folks to the N.E.W. core rulebook for the creation of planetary systems, but the star information is the same real astronomical information you used.

Omer JSeptember 16, 2016 4:21 pm UTC

PUBLISHER

Thanks! I have just bought this :-)

Jerry SSeptember 11, 2016 6:24 pm UTC

PURCHASER

Great job - love this product!

Omer JSeptember 11, 2016 7:30 pm UTC

PUBLISHER

Thanks!

Gerry MSeptember 11, 2016 2:52 pm UTC

PURCHASER

This is excellent work!!! I am again impressed... I can see doing something with this map in a homebrewed game.

Omer JSeptember 11, 2016 4:11 pm UTC

PUBLISHER

Thank you for your kind words! :-)

Cam KSeptember 06, 2016 2:25 pm UTC

Do the stars use positional data straight from the star catalogs or are they time corrected? For example, if a star is ten ly away, is its position adjusted to be ten years in the future from its current, apparent position?

Omer JSeptember 06, 2016 5:09 pm UTC

PUBLISHER

I will check that with our experts and get back to you ASAP :-)

Omer JSeptember 06, 2016 7:51 pm UTC

PUBLISHER

All the data we used was adjusted to 2000CE. Nothing was adjusted for a future state. Barnard's Star is an example will have moved quite a ways, but would still be in the same hex as the current map. We did consider adjusting for stellar drift, but after reviewing Barnard's Star we felt it was too much work without any real changes.

Adam CSeptember 05, 2016 9:20 pm UTC

PURCHASER

Excellent product. The news that getting to and from Sol requires a Jump-2 capable ship is interesting to say the least.

Omer JSeptember 06, 2016 5:47 am UTC

PUBLISHER

Thanks!

If you use HSC (hypothetical) stars, then you can go all across the Solar Main with a Jump-1 Drive. If you only use real stars then yes, the nearest stars are over a parsec away from here, and you'll need Jump-2...

Timothy ASeptember 05, 2016 11:53 am UTC

PURCHASER

Nice product. A version without the HSC stars would be good as well.

Omer JSeptember 05, 2016 12:31 pm UTC

PUBLISHER

Great idea! Working on this.

Omer JSeptember 05, 2016 5:26 pm UTC

PUBLISHER

We have now added the two maps - full-color and printer-friendly - in a version without the HSC stars and have notified all customers about this change.

Timothy ASeptember 06, 2016 1:24 am UTC

PURCHASER

Excellent. Thank you.

John PSeptember 01, 2016 4:33 pm UTC

PURCHASER

Where's Wolf 359? Should be 3 hexes from Sol in the direction of Sirius... So hex 1013?

Omer JSeptember 01, 2016 7:32 pm UTC

PUBLISHER

Probably ended up in the same hex as another star, so I had to choose one of them, but yes, you can definitely place it in Hex 1013.

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